Lesson: Provisional Cast On (Knit)

• Attaching the ends of a piece together without an unsightly seam
• Hemming or edging
• Working a piece when you are unsure how far your yarn will go

• One needle at least two (2) sizes larger than the needle size your project calls for OR two needles held together that are the same size that your project requires.
• Scrap of waste yarn, longer than the length of the stitches you want to cast on.
• Working yarn

Make a slip knot. Leave a small tail. Work the yarn from the skein.

Hold the end of the scrap yarn in the same hand as the needles. (Leftie for me!)

*Move the working yarn in front of the waste yarn.

Move the working yarn under the waste yarn.

Move the working yarn in front of and over the needle.*

Repeat from * to * until you have the required number of loops of working yarn on the needle. Here's what it looks like a few stitches in:

Move the working yarn in front of the waste yarn.

Move the working yarn under the waste yarn.

Move the working yarn in front of and over the needle.

You should have an equal number of stitches around the waste yarn as you have on the needle.

End by moving the working yarn in front of and under the waste yarn.

Your work should look like this after removing the needles, leaving only the waste yarn, and working a few rows

When you want to use the live stitches on the waste yarn, just pick them up on a new needle and remove the waste yarn. Make sure you pick up the same amount of stitches you cast on.

Tips:

• Keep waste yarn taught as you work the first few rows so the live stitches, on the ends especially, don't unravel.
• It's OK if your live stitches on the waste yarn are loose while on the waste yarn. This should go away when you pick them up and work with them.

Labels: Lessons